Art of Living

Sri Sri Ravishankar speaks about Jyoti Basu

2010-01-17T16:08:34Z

Sri Sri Ravishankar spoke about Jyoti Basu, shortly after his death. Sri Sri Ravishankar said “Jyoti Basu was a fan of Swami Vivekanada”. Then Sri Sri went on to remember his meeting with the former West Bengal chief minister a few years ago.

Sri Sri Ravishankar’s new year message

2010-01-17T14:59:55Z

Originally posted on my other Art of Living blog.

Sri Sri Ravishankar’s Video message for new year 2010.

Every
excuse to celebrate is good. there are two aspects of true celebration.
one is celebration as thanksgiving, as an expression of gratitude for
the divine. the second celebration is to move forward by dropping the
past, knowing that life is eternal. welcome the new year with either or
both of these true celebrations. Like the christmas tree, life is
evergreen. no storm or snow can weather away its leaves. similarly, our
spirit is eternal and though time and some adversities may try to cloud
the spirit, it still moves forward through personal or social grief and
emerges powerful. The nature of spirit is celebration. celebration is
the best medicine to help you move forward in life - it gets you out of
the gloom after a crisis. in celebration, don’t just concentrate on
having parties. when celebration has a tinge of sacredness and prayer,
it gains depth and dignity. then, that type of a celebration is
service, it is sacred. it is not just entertainment for the mind or
excitement for the body, but nourishment for the soul. in such
celebration, guilt will come nowhere near you. Instead of beginning the
new year with an intoxicant, if it can begin with an act of kindness, a
moment of reflection and even a second of introspection, we can call
ourselves far more civilised. your guilt for celebration is only if
your celebration is for your own pleasure. if celebration is aimed at
uplifting and uniting the hearts and minds of people around you, if it
is to help them to let go of the traumatic past and kindle a ray of
hope for the future, if your celebration is aimed at uplifting society,
then that type of celebration is service, it is sacred. don’t feel
stingy. share what you have with others. turn your celebration into a
sacred offering for society rather than make it a self-centred
pleasure-seeking one. To celebrate life, you don’t have to spend a lot
of money. celebration comes from enthusiasm and joy, celebration is an
attitude and that does not need resources. when things are depressing,
celebration is needed even more. a visit to the slums makes you realise
that one can celebrate even during tough times. look at those people.
they still celebrate. Let time celebrate your presence. when you let
time celebrate you, you are a witness amid celebration. welcome the
year 2010 with a genuine smile from within. that smile comes when you
know for sure that you are loved. if you don’t know you are loved by
the divine, you will not be able to celebrate life. you will live in
insecurity. with insecurity comes greed. with greed comes selfishness.
and with that comes anger. with anger comes lust. and with that comes
sadness and misery, one behind the other, like a chain. In the past
year, check how many days you were entangled in maya? turn back and
remember the whole year. when you do this, do not reject anything. let
your attention be on the self. this is a delicate balance. this is
yoga. this balance is spirituality. spirituality is a harmonious blend
of outer silence and inner celebration, and also inner silence and
outer celebration! celebration that comes out of silence is real
celebration. The year gone by has taught us many lessons: what we
should be doing and what we should not be doing. every pain that we
went through in 2009 brought us some depth, and the joy and pleasure
gave us a new vision of life and hope for the future. difficulties give
you depth and joy gives you width. one thing you must know is that life
will always be better. it moves in the direction of the best. on the
way you may find some rough roads, but it’s for the better. reconcile
with the past and move on to the future with enthusiasm. The wise will
see their past as destiny and the future as free will, and be happy in
the present. the unwise regret the past and think the future is
destined, and become miserable in the present. in 2010, you have the
choice of being one of the two. This new year, let there be sunshine -
both in our lives and in society. let us all have the determination to
create a violence-free, stress-free society. may your life be filled
with peace, joy and true celebration. happy new year! — Sri Sri Ravi
ShankarSri Sri Ravishankar’s previous new year messages:

New Year 2009
An earlier new year

New Art of Living blog

2009-12-11T19:52:15Z

I have created a new blog artoflivinginfo.blogspot.com on Art of Living. All the posts in this blog are available on this new blog. Also the previous blog art-of-living-blog.blogspot.com has been shifted to the new Art of Living blog.

New blog on art of living

2009-12-11T23:04:21Z

I am replicating this blog to artoflivinginfo.blogspot.com as blogspot has better features and flexibility than rediffiland. New posts will be posted there. Check it out.

Does Congress buy votes? Yes it is true!!!!

1970-01-01T00:00:00Z

Does Congress buy votes? Yes, congress is trying to buy votes for Rs 500 each in Anaparti constituency in Andhra Pradesh.
The following is the article that I had posted earlier on my other blog.

We keep seeing news in the media about
the corrupt ways of the political parties to buy people’s votes.
Although the election commission is trying to enforce strict election
regulations, it by and large fails in taking action against those who
violate the regulations.

We keep hearing about political parties
distributing cash and liquor to people to buy votes. Is it true? Well,
it is an open secret that everybody knows. Here is a direct evidence.
Today I was educating our servant on how to vote in the new EVM
(electronic voting machine) system at my home town Anaparti in Andhra Pradesh,
India. My grand mother told her not to sell her vote to any
party/candidate for cash; accept the money if anybody gives it, but
don’t get influenced by it. Then I got curious and asked her whether
anybody has already given her money. She revealed that Praja Rajyam party had given her Rs 250 and the ruling congress party had given Rs 500! This is true and this is what happens everywhere!! Anaparti’s congress candidate is Nallamilli Sesha Reddy
and Praja rajam contestant is D R K Reddy. Well, though the latter is
my relative, I can not support a person or a party that takes recourse
to corruption to win elections. In fact, there is a wide spread news
that Prajarajaym party sold Anaparti ticket for Rs 4 crores to D R K
Reddy. It is widely believed that cine actor and Praja rajyam party
president Chiranjeevi sold most of his party tickets and there are
credible evidences for this. Many of the party internal sources too
acknowledge this.

Why don’t the election commission and the
police take stringent action against these perpetrators of crimes. Why
don’t they cancel the candidature of the candidates? True they arrest
some people here and there, seize some cash and liquor. But how much is
it useful? All this is an eye wash. They should severely punish the
actual contestants and cancel their candidature rather than arresting
chota-mota volunteers. Btw, it is worthy to note the commendable work done by Andhra Pradesh chief election commissioner E. V. Subba Rao, and DGP A. K. Mohanty in checking corruption. But I feel the state election commissioners should be more strict in their action against the corrupt.

In a nutshell, most of the politicians in
India spend huge money for buying party tickets and then they buy poor
people’s votes with cash and liquor. Then what service will they do to
people when they come into power? They will be spending their time and
energies to earn 10 times more money than what they spent. In fact,
everybody knows that this is what congress chief minister (of Andhra
Pradesh) Y S Rajasekhar Reddy did in the last five years. His family
earned thousands of crores during his tenure as Andhra Pradesh’s chief
minister. It is unfortunate congress and its president Sonia Gandhi
supports such a corrupt leader.

As responsible citizens, we
should vote “out” these corrupt parties and individuals and pave the
way for a positive change by electing right candidates and parties.

Tags: Indian National Congress distributes cash to buy votes.
Prajarajam bribes voters for Rs 250.
Andhra Pradesh election scene, Indian elections 2009

2009-04-19T18:19:49Z

I have taken the following following from L. K. Advani’s website:
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar responds to Advaniji’s letter to spiritual leaders

* appreciates initiative to include leaders of all faiths to keep the secular & spiritual character of our country intact.

* lauds Advaniji's move to bring back 74 lakh crore rupees of Indian black money from Swiss banks.
Read more
Read Advani’s letter to spiritual leaders

Time to Act! Hard facts about Congress government - vote for change

2009-04-19T18:49:48Z

Dear Ones,

Go through each and every link in my post on classified information about the present congress government in my other blog. Our country’s Future is in our hands! Become Aware of the current situation of our Government and you have the power to bring about change!!

As a true citizen of this country, you should share this information with ALL NOW, only few days remaining for voting!

Vote for Change!

Please share this information with all your friends.

Power of your Vote by Sri Sri Ravishankar

2009-04-07T17:54:39Z

The Power of your Vote - Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

India’s problems are complex. And unfortunately these are compounded by vote-bank politics. Instead of uniting the different sections of society, many politicians divide it to keep their vote banks intact. If people are united, politicians won’t be able to get votes through divisive politics.In such a situation, the only way for them to win votes would be through good performance.

As citizens, we must protect our country from those who manipulate issues for their personal gains and who lead by playing vote-bank politics. Those with vested interests support insensible decisions and oppose sensible ones. We have to steer clear of such leaders. We must encourage broad-minded politicians and leaders to come forward and take charge, and to educate and uplift the society - spiritually, morally and socially.

We need leaders who are satya-darshi (truthful), sam-darshi (equanimous), priya-darshi (pleasant), paar-darshi (transparent) and door-darshi (visionary). So, before we elect our leaders, we should examine their qualifications.

We must elect leaders who will do away with policies based on caste, creed, religion and region; who will ensure that every child gets a multi-cultural, multi-dimensional education.

We need leadership with a mission and a vision, leadership with a spirit of sacrifice, compassion and commitment. We must choose leaders who have a long-term vision and short-term plans to achieve it. They should have great personal integrity, and place the country before themselves.

Unfortunately, most of our politicians lack a sense of sacrifice and inclusiveness. Irrespective of the party they belong to, people perceive politicians as insincere. Today, people are fed up of them. This is when apathy sets in among people. They dismiss politics as a whole and withdraw from their basic duty of voting.

Our votes are an important tool to bring about a change in the system; they give us an opportunity to raise our voice against injustice. But many of us have developed a chalta hai attitude, because we fail to see the power of our votes. This attitude is dangerous for the country. By not voting we are encouraging the status quo. Each one of us must not only vote but also encourage others around us to vote.
When good, intelligent and well-educated people don’t vote, they play into the hands of politicians, who use money and vote bank politics to seize power.
People should not lose hope. Good politicians exist. And they must be given a chance to do the best they can for the country, for its people.
We have seen the shortcomings of capitalism, communism and socialism. Now is the time for humanism and spiritualism. Politics without humanism and spiritualism is bound to be dirty. Many people believe that spiritualism is not for this world, that it is not a practical tool to bring about societal transformation. But that’s a misconception. Mahatma Gandhi was spiritual. He conducted satsangs every day and played an important role in bringing freedom for our country.That is why today we need leaders who have a spirit of sacrifice, and who are spiritual in their outlook, to enter politics.

Sri Sri Ravishankar and SIMI’s talk at KERALA

1970-01-01T00:00:00Z

This happened in Kerela.

Sri Sri gave an audience to the SIMI (Student Islamic Movement of
India) leaders. Four leaders from SIMI came to meet Sri Sri at the residence
of one of the organizers. Following their entry, an air of tension enveloped
the hall where hundreds were waiting to meet with Sri Sri. Naseeb, one of
the devotees, guided them to the room where Sri Sri was sitting with a few
of us. They (the SIMI leaders), were dashing youths in their mid 20’s. One
of them was carrying the holy Koran. They were little stern and stiff. Their
eyes were fixed and seemed to reflect an inner fire. They looked prepared to
repulse anything that Sri Sri would tell them and most unlikely to listen to
reason.

Sri Sri was His usual smiling self.

The stage was set. It had all the signs of a classic confrontation. On one
side were the brash youth - intemperate, impatient, driven by ideology and
out to prove their superiority. On the other was a youthful, realized sage,
unperturbed, offering sane explanations that echoed an uncommon depth and
breadth of understanding. Those of us in the room, were eager to see how Sri
Sri would deal with these firebrands. Sri Sri embraced them and offered them
chairs to sit. There was not an iota of difference in His attitude. Any
casual onlooker could be forgiven for thinking that Sri Sri considered these
gentlemen as amongst His most ardent devotees. Perhaps the only difference
that we could see was that they were seated on chairs while the rest of us
were on the floor! For us, it was yet another opportunity to witness the
unconditional love that Sri Sri exemplifies.

The leader of the group spoke first. He asked

SIMI: You had wanted to meet with us.

SRI SRI: Yes. I wanted to understand why your organization was opposed to
the Anandotsavam.

SIMI: We thought that holding an Anandotsavam (celebration) on December 6th
was a deliberate move to insult our religious sentiments. Do you know about
our religion?. Do you believe in the Koran at all?

SRI SRI: Yes of course.

SIMI: (Not expecting this answer, pointing to the Koran, they shot the next
question) We believe that Koran is the only knowledge. What about you?

SRI SRI: This is one amongst the various knowledge revealed to man from time
to time.

SIMI: But God has said this is the only knowledge. The way of the Koran is
the only way. There is no other way.

SRI SRI: This message can be found in scriptures of all religions. In the
Vedas it is said “Naanyah Panthaah Ayanaaya Vidyate” meaning “There is no
other way but the way of Truth!” The same is said in the Bible, Jesus says,
“To go to my father, you have to go through me. I am the only way”.

SIMI: But our scripture says worshipping any form or idol is evil, it is
blasphemy.

SRI SRI: What is Good and Evil after all? It is relative. Relative existence
is not the complete picture For example: Milk is good, but too much milk can
kill you. Poison is harmful, but a drop of poison can save your life. Most
lifesaving medicines have poison written on them! These are neither
absolutely good nor bad they are just there. Truth transcends duality, and
God is the Absolute and only Truth. So, where is the place for evil?

SIMI: Yet you Hindus worship many Gods, whereas our ideal is there is only
one God and His message is what is required to go to heaven.

SRI SRI: There is only one god in many forms.

SIMI: (Restless and unwilling to listen to any explanation, they interrupted
Sri Sri.) But the Koran says you should only worship Allah who is formless
whereas the Hindus worship idols which are only stones.

SRI SRI: At this, Sri Sri suddenly asked them: Do you honour the Koran?

SIMI: (They seemed a little taken aback at this question from Sri Sri and
with a righteous air answered). Yes, it is God’s word!

SRI SRI: Do you honor the Mecca?

SIMI: Yes, of course! That is our sacred place.

SRI SRI: So also, Hindu’s honour God’s creation as God. Just like sound
(Koran), the crescent moon, Kaaba and the month of Ramadan are sacred for
you, Hindus consider the River Ganges, the Himalayas, Saints as sacred. See,
a picture of your daughter is not your daughter, but you still adore the
daughter’s picture. When you see the picture aren’t you reminded of your
daughter?
(They nodded a yes)

SRI SRI: So also, a symbol is not God but is honoured as God. This sense of
honouring and sacredness makes you awake and alive. That is why the ancient
Rishis said to feel the entire creation and your whole life as sacred. They
considered God as omnipresent, as inseparable from His creation; like the
dance and the dancer.

Sri Sri elaborated further - Spirit loves diversity. Is there only one type
of vegetable or fruit? God created many type of fruits and vegetables. There
is not just one type of tree, not just one type of snake, cloud,
mosquito..Even you change your dress for different occasions. So how could
this consciousness that manifested this whole creation be monotonous? There
is only one God in many forms. Only one God is advocated. When you accept
the variety of Divinity, you cease to be a fanatic and fundamentalist. A
pregnant silence filled the room as they looked at each other expecting the
other to speak. Then as a face saving measure, the SIMI leader replied, “I
will need to go and consult my higher scholars.” With a compassionate
expression on His face, Sri Sri said: Never mind, (with a wave of His hand)
forget about religion. We are all human beings. Let us have a peaceful
society. Let us focus on development.

SIMI: No No No! What are you saying? You are talking about this world. What
we do here is immaterial. The Koran tells us that what matters is what you
get in eternal life and not to worry about material life. By doing service
to the society you will simply remain here. You have to obey Allah. Allah is
the only God and Mohammed is the last prophet.

SRI SRI: At this Sri Sri stopped them and after a pause asked them: Do you
think the Sikh Gurus are not prophets. Isn’t Mirabai a prophet? What about
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu?
Once again, there was silence. Their expressions had changed. The rigidity
had weakened and in its place was some confusion/uncertainty. Sri Sri seemed
totally at ease unmindful of the challenges posed at Him.

SIMI: No! You can go to heaven only if you believe in Allah and the Koran.

SRI SRI: No my dear - there was Buddha, Mahavira, Nanak, Jesus, Shankara. Do
you think they are not in heaven? If not, then I would rather be with them!

SIMI: You are such a nice person, but we pity you because you cannot get the
truth. You can’t go to Allah. You can’t be rewarded by Allah. God will never
show mercy on you.

SRI SRI: Never mind. (with a mischievous smile ) I will be with these people
(Shankara, Jesus, etc.)
(Even as we were admiring Sri Sri’s patience and objectivity, we were
concerned at the wrong indoctrination that these youths had been subjected
to. We also observed a few others who were in the room were getting a little
restive, possibly wondering why Sri Sri was spending so much time with these
people who were obviously not at all receptive and that too when hundreds
were waiting outside just for a glimpse of Sri Sri.)

SIMI: Do you know, that over 1400 years ago, in the middle of the desert,
God revealed the secrets of creation. Even when there was no science, God
said that the Atom is the smallest particle!

SRI SRI smiled and said: Yes, the same is there in the shaastras too which
were known more than 10,000 years ago. In the shaastras it is said that the
Earth is over 19 billion years old! Truth is beyond time and space. It is
not confined to one time or one place One needs to have a scientific
spirituality.

As if to conclude the conversation Sri Sri gave them Ladoo as prasad. By now
there were traces of a smile on their faces. When they were about to leave
He gave them a hug. They definitely seemed to be less stern than earlier.
Could their attitude have changed? We wondered whether this (’changed
attitude’) would persist or would they go back to their old fanatic ways.
But one thing was for sure, Sri Sri had made an impression that they would
not forget!
Later, while Sri Sri was having His lunch, someone asked Him, “Why is that
Islam is producing so many terrorists all over the world? No other religion
has given rise to so many terrorists in the world. What is the reason?”
SRI SRI: Look at the commitment and the fire in them. Take the good from
them and learn what you should not be doing. Don’t label them as bad people.
They have not been imparted the knowledge of Vedanta. (Then as He was adding
ghee to the chili powder) He smiled and said “In this creation, there is a
place for everything.”
Excerpted from an article written by Swami Sadhyojata and Harish Ramachandran

Ganesh Festival 2008, Mumbai

2008-11-07T19:22:14Z

Ganesh immersion 2008 in Arabian sea at Girgaon Chowpatty beach, Marine Drive, Mumbai.

This is the first movie from my new Sony handycam. Its a cool model with 40x optical zoom! (digital zoom is 2000x). It has a cool 30 GB hard disk, so no hassles of video cassette or DVD! I posted this video originally at my other blog

Labels: Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bombay, Gahesh Chaturthi, Ganesh Festival, Ganesha, Krishna Reddy, Mumbai, Video

Happy Ganesh Festival!

2009-04-22T17:28:36Z

Wish you all a fabulous Ganesh Festival! Yesterday, on the auspicious occasion of Gahesh Chaturthi, I have launched a cool new website krishna-reddy.com and started my latest blog blog.krishna-reddy.com. Let us see how and where it will go!

Ganapati Bappa Morya!

A Ganesh Pandal at Mahim, Mumbai

Over the next few days I will post more photos/videos of Lord Ganesh especially from Mumbai. So check back!

Krishna Reddy’s other blog (now old blog)

Happy Guru Purnima

2008-07-17T11:05:35Z

Today is Guru Purnima.Wish you all a wonderful Guru Purnima.
See my earlier article on Guru Purnima.
Also see Guru Purnima at about.com.

My new blog

2008-06-29T18:53:25Z

Friends, I have started a new blog http://krishnareddy-blog.blogspot.com/, a hotchpotch of everything under the sun..Me and the doggy-dear at my Mumbai home lobby

However, Krish Wonders will remain my primary blog as always

Happy Ram Navmi!

1970-01-01T00:00:00Z

Happy Ram Navmi to all!
Check out my previous Art of Living blog on Ram Navmi
Also check out my post who are you ? - 2.

Check out the latest on my other blog too.

Best v/s worst paradox!

2008-03-23T19:53:01Z

Life is full of contradictions and ironies.
Truth is always self-contradictory!

I am the best and worst..
I am the most intelligent and most foolish at the same time!
I am good and bad at the same time!
I am a multi-dimensional guy but think linearly some times..

I am the best and worst..
I am full as well as empty at the same time.
I am “everybody” and “nobody” at the same time! [1]
I am vast like sky and deep like sea at the same time!

I am the best and worst..
I am the most perfect and a crackpot at the same time!
I am a dreamer as well as realist.
I am the world”s best Dal maker, yet worst cook [2]

I am the best and worst..
I am ignorant, yet most knowledgeable!
I am rich, yet the poor!!
I am a well-educated man and illiterate simultaneously!

I am the best and worst..
I am a good mathematician, still bad at calculations! [3]
I am an innovator but don”t know what to do at times!
I solve everybody”s problems but still I have some problems!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am the best and worst..
There is no impossibility for me, still I can”t do some simplest! tasks!
George Bush is a stupid guy, yet he did some smart things!
Her “letting go” is her biggest strengh as well as her worst weakness many a times!

I am the best and worst..
Einstein: Most ever intelligent in the mankind history. But he was a slow thinker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Isaac Newton: Was the GREATEST ever scientist, but he did stupid things. [4]
Osama Bin Laden is the cruelest guy, yet he is kind [to his family and team-members (terrorists!)]

I am the best and worst..
I see/touch matter ONLY but I know I have a mind! [5]
I am a physicist and spiritualist! [6]
Light is waves yet it is particles (photons)! [7]

I am the best and worst..
History”s best computer science innovators/pioneers were NOT computer scientists, but they ARE physicists & mathematicians. [8]
What you see is NOT truth; Truth is beyond our knowledge/common sense. [9]
You practically “see” a mirage which never exists!

I am the best and worst..
Light travels in straight-lines ONLY, yet it BENDS too!!
I can”t “see” “myself” but I know I exist!
I will die in a few decades, still I am ETERNAL; I know I will never ever die! nor was I ever born!!

Tamasoma Jyotirgamaya..

Too much to digest?? Just take a cold water shower
My other blog: Krish Wonders Blog!

1 Watch Matrix movie or read Yoga Vasishta/Bhagavadgita to understand this!
2 Dal is the only thing I can cook! But my Dal tadka has a huuuuge fan following!!
3 I am slow at adding three 2-digit numbers! Solving a multivariable partial differential equation of 20th order is much easier!!
4 Newton made one big hole (in his door) for his large (pet) cat (to enter) and another small hole for his kitten. Eventually both the cats ended up using the big hole only!
5 And I have never “seen” your mind; BUT I KNOW for SURE… You HAVE a mind!!!!
6 A physicist is concerned with physical, “material”/”tangible”/”visible” matter and measurable energy. A spiritualist is concerned with mind and consciousness (spirit). By the way, mind and matter complement each other! there is no contradiction, they are different sides of the same coin!!
7 Same with matter - Schrodinger Equation
8 Pioneers in Artificial Intelligence, parallel processing etc etc were physicists; Internet was invented at CERN labs, its not Yahoo, Microsoft or Apple….
9 It is
technically/scientifically/theoretically&practically POSSIBLE to
travel into 1000 years future within just a few minutes!

Happy women’s day!

1970-01-01T00:00:00Z

Happy women’s day all!

See my previous posts Empowering women through Art of Living and Happy women’s day
Also check out today’s Candle light vigil invitation by Rediff on fight against eve teasing at Gateway of India on the occasion of women’s day on my Krish Wonders blog. Rahul Bose etc will be extending their support for this initiative.

Happy Mahashivratri

2012-02-20T08:31:06Z

Happy Mahashivratri to all

Shiva, the Peace within You

Ratri or night is that which gives comfort to the mind, body & soul.
Shivaratri is that which brings a deep sense of serenity & benevolence.
Any meditation you do on this day has a manifold effect, 100 times more
of an effect, for this is the day when spirit touches the earth.

Your Nature is Shiva

Peace is your nature, yet you remain restless.
Freedom is your nature, yet you remain in bondage.
Happiness is your nature, yet you become miserable for some reason or
another.
Contentment is your nature, yet you continue to reel in desires.
Benevolence is your nature, yet you don”t reach out.
Going towards your nature is Sadhana.
Sadhana is becoming what you truly Are!

Your true nature is Shiva.
And Shiva is peace, infinity, beauty and the non-dual One.
Ratri means “to take refuge.” Shivaratri is taking refuge in Shiva.

- Sri Sri Ravishankar, founder, Art of Living

Also check out my latest on my personal blog krishna-reddy.com

Divine Valentine!

2008-09-05T00:51:19Z

Happy Valentines Day to all

Krishna, the Eternal Celebration

ABIDING IN THE SELF

Abiding in the self you become the Valentine for the whole world. Spirit is the Valentine of matter and matter is the Valentine of the spirit. They are made for each other. They uphold each other. If you hold onto matter and do not respect the spirit, then matter is not pleased. If you honor the spirit then you will care for the world, and when you care for the world, it will take care of you.

I am the Valentine of the whole world and I reside in every heart. If you are my Valentine, you will see me everywhere. Have the same love for everyone, with different flavors. You cannot behave the same way with everyone, but you can love all of them the same. Love transcends behavior and etiquette.

BE LOVED

You don't need to worry to maintain knowledge. When knowledge is lodged in you as wisdom, it will never leave you. Wisdom lodges itself in your heart. Make the Divine your Valentine (your sweet Beloved). This is the last thing to do and the first thing to do.

Keep your heart in a safe place; it is too delicate. Events, small things make strong impressions on it. And you cannot find a better place than the Divine to keep your heart safe and your mind sane. When you keep your heart in the Divine, the moving time, the passing events, will not be able to touch it, will not create a scar. A precious stone needs a setting around it, gold or silver, to hold it and to wear it; so wisdom and knowledge are that setting around the heart which will hold it in the Divine.

See the Divine in your Valentine and make the Divinity your Valentine (your sweet beloved). Just BE… and know that you are LOVED…That is BELOVED.

Wisdom is to consider the earth as your Valentine. Whether it shakes or breaks, it is dear to you. You always see good coming from it.

- His Holiness Sri Sri Ravishankar, Art of Living founder

Radha Krishna, the Eternal, Divine Love

Check out my To my Valentine poem on my other blog too…